City OKs alcohol permit for Mars event

Springfield City Council approved plans Tuesday for a Mars Theatre fundraiser to be held May 4.

Council members also OK’d an alcohol license permit for the event, which is part of the Fox Theatre Institute’s Theatre Revival Tour. The tour is a three-day traveling music festival “to honor and promote small theaters in Georgia,” said Gussie Nease of the Springfield Revitalization Corporation.

Springfield and the Mars Theatre are the third leg of the tour, and Alpharetta-based recording artists Von Grey will headline the event. Dayspring Reliance and the Pace Brothers also are scheduled to perform.

“The goal is to bring people to Springfield, so they know merchants are here,” Nease said.

The event also is a celebration of the Fox Theatre Institute’s grant to the Mars Theatre.

“It’s a thank you to the community for bearing with us and to show things are headed in the right direction,” said Jamey Stancell of the Springfield Merchants Association.

Stancell said he didn’t know just how many people would turn out for the event, though they requested the city block off Laurel Street from 1st Street to 2nd Street. The event will be held in the parking lot between Springfield City Hall and the Mars Theatre.

“If we get 300 to 400 people, it doesn’t sound like a lot, but it will spill over from the parking lot,” Stancell said.

Council members agreed to allow beer sales from 11 a.m.-9 p.m. the day of the event. There will be wristbands for those who present proper identification, and each beer will be 12 ounces and will cost $3.50. Stancell said 100 percent of the proceeds raised from the event will go back to the Mars Theatre.

The Mars Theatre’s annual benefit bike ride is set for April 20, with routes of 18, 36 and 65 miles. The ride begins at 8 a.m. at the Mars and there will be rest stops along each course with snacks, drinks and medical aid, if needed.

Signups can be accomplished through the Mars’ Web site, marstheatre.com, or through www.Active.com.

Mars Theatre benefits• When: April 20 and May 4• Where: Springfield• About: The annual Mars Theatre benefit bike ride will be held April 20 with routes of three different lengths. The Fox Theatre Institute’s Theatre Revival Tour stops at the Mars on May 4, with Von Grey headlining the event.